There was a bit of a shakeup at the top of the point standings this week, as NASCAR announced a 25-point penalty against last week's Dover race winner Carl Edwards. The No. 99 car's right rear fender measured 1/4" lower than the 1/2" tolerance in post-race tech. Although NASCAR officials told Edwards that they did not believe the discrepancy was intentional, and even acknowledged that too low in the right rear was a competitive disadvantage, they still assessed the penalty, no doubt to try to avoid charges of inconsistency or favoritism.

Edwards' car owner Jack Roush is appealing, but for now the 25-point penalty stands, dropping Edwards from third to sixth in points, now 28 points behind leader Jeff Gordon. The distance between 1st and 12th in the standings is still 158 points, meaning all 12 Chase drivers are within the 161 maximum point total that a driver can gain in a single race.

Kansas is the third race of the Chase and marks the first time in a few weeks that we won't be seeing the Car of Tomorrow on the track. A flat 1½-miler, Kansas is one of a group of relatively flat, intermediate-distance tracks known as the "cookie cutter" race tracks.

Kansas is most often compared to Chicago, but in reality each of the cookie-cutter tracks has its own unique characteristics. The most challenging part of the track here is turn 3, where racers have to drive the car deep into the corner to be able to get into turn 4 properly.

Practice kicked off Friday morning under clear blue skies with the resounding complaint from the garage being slick conditions on the track. Most cars were loose, making that tricky turn 3 even more challenging.

Non-Chase driver Dale Earnhardt Jr. paced the morning practice session with a speed of 175.069 mph and a lap time of 30.845. Two other non-Chase drivers - Casey Mears and Ryan Newman - also practiced in the top five, Mears at 4th and Newman at 5th. That trio of drivers - Earnhardt, Mears and Newman, are competing against one another for 13th in the point standings, the highest possible finishing spot for drivers outside the Chase. Earnhardt currently holds the 13th spot, with Newman 14th, Greg Biffle 15th, and Mears 16th.

Jimmie Johnson had the fastest practice time among Chase competitors and was second fastest overall behind Earnhardt Jr. Other Chase drivers in the top 10 included Martin Truex Jr (3rd), Kurt Busch (6th), Jeff Gordon (7th), Kyle Busch (8th), Clint Bowyer (9th), and Denny Hamlin (10th)

The top 11 cars in practice were all Chevys and Dodges, with the bowtie brigade taking the top four spots. Greg Biffle in 12th had the fastest Ford at 173.221.

A few Chase contenders found themselves further down the practice chart, including last year's Kansas winner Tony Stewart in 30th, Carl Edwards in 31st, Jeff Burton in 32nd, and, for the second week in a row Kevin Harvick the slowest of all 12 Chase drivers in morning practice at 41st.

Drivers were still concerned about the slickness of the track and that tricky turn three-four combination as qualifying started Friday afternoon. Most teams found their qualifying runs a few tenths slower than morning practice, although a few were able to pick up speed in qualifying.

In a virtual repeat of last week, Jimmie Johnson carried his fast practice effort over to Cup qualifying, taking the pole with a lap speed of 175.063 miles per hour and a time of 30.846. Surprisingly, Johnson was very unhappy with his car's handling during his qualifying lap, though he was one of only a few drivers complaining of being tight. Even after learning his lap time, Johnson initially didn't think it would hold up for P1, but it did, giving the 48 team its second pole in as many weeks and third this season. Johnson is currently shown as a favorite to win outright at 4:1.

Roush-Fenway's Matt Kenseth, not normally thought of as a top qualified, will roll off second Sunday, scoring the outside pole with a lap time of 30.984. Kenseth and fellow Chase competitor Jeff Gordon are currently 6:1 in live betting odds, and Gordon also qualified well at 4th. Dale Earnhardt Jr., who led the morning practice session, slowed slightly in qualifying but still turned a very respectable 31 flat to qualify 6th. At 10:1 odds, Earnhardt could be a good pick for Sunday, unless plagued by the engine woes that have haunted the No. 8 team this season.

Scott Riggs in the No. 10 Valvoline Dodge was notably fast, qualifying 3rd at a 31.041. Riggs, Earnhardt Jr., and Greg Biffle (7th), were the only non-Chase drivers to qualify in the top 10. On the flip side, two Chase drivers will roll off from mid field or further back, including Carl Edwards (27th) and Jeff Burton (34th). All three Chase contenders from Hendrick are in the top 10.

Overall, seven Chevys qualified in the top ten, along with two Fords (Kenseth and Biffle) and Scott Riggs' lone Dodge. At 20:1 odds, Biffle is an intriguing pick for Sunday, coming off a second-place run last week which was his best finish of the year. Last year's Kansas winner Tony Stewart qualified 19th and is currently showing at 5:1. Michael Waltrip had the fastest Toyota, narrowly missing the top 10 to qualify 11th.

Among go-or-go-homers, MWR placed all three cars on the starting grid with Dale Jarrett at 13th and David Reutimann a bit further back at 25th. Drivers failing to make the field for Sunday's race are A.J. Allmendinger, Ward Burton, Brian Vickers, and Jon Woods.

Lastly, though Mark Martin needed an owner's points provisional to make the field, bettors shouldn't rule out a strong run by the veteran racer, especially with his current odds at 50:1. Now driving part-time for DEI, Martin knows how to get around this track - in six previous Kansas starts with Roush Racing, Martin had three top 10s, an average finish of 12.5, and a win here in 2005.